Our group worked on the issue of how to effectively incorporate the service users' voice/s and feedback into planning, developing and delivering social work courses. Social work academics do want to include the needs and voices of service users, but attending to the regulators' requirements tends to get in the way. The problem becomes trying to hear real voices without tokenism, for example most courses choose service users who will tell the regulator what they want to hear to re-accredit the program. Similarly students will choose the service users whose feedback helps them to pass.
We suggest that instead of filtering service users' voices through either students needs or regulation needs, academics should talk directly to service users about how they see good professional practice and the kinds of graduates they want from social work programs.
This wiki captures the process we followed in conceptualising the landscape, the boundary issues involved, and some possible solutions so that service user voice is heard.
Whose voice is it anyway?
Our group worked on the issue of how to effectively incorporate the service users' voice/s and feedback into planning, developing and delivering social work courses. Social work academics do want to include the needs and voices of service users, but attending to the regulators' requirements tends to get in the way. The problem becomes trying to hear real voices without tokenism, for example most courses choose service users who will tell the regulator what they want to hear to re-accredit the program. Similarly students will choose the service users whose feedback helps them to pass.
We suggest that instead of filtering service users' voices through either students needs or regulation needs, academics should talk directly to service users about how they see good professional practice and the kinds of graduates they want from social work programs.
This wiki captures the process we followed in conceptualising the landscape, the boundary issues involved, and some possible solutions so that service user voice is heard.
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